Thursday, May 19, 2011

Despite the company recently announcing a deal to supply the Beijing Electric Vehicle Company, Johnson Controls today took legal action in the Delaware Chancery Court to dissolve the Johnson Controls-Saft joint venture. The joint venture was formed in 2006 to develop and manufacture lithium-ion motive battery solutions.

"Johnson Controls and Saft have a fundamental disagreement about the future direction and appropriate scope of the joint venture," said Alex Molinaroli, president, Johnson Controls Power Solutions. "The industry is evolving rapidly and the investments needed to achieve market leadership require us to do more than the joint venture has done or can do."

Johnson Controls believes that as vehicle power train technologies continue to evolve and new markets emerge for advanced batteries, the company must have access to multiple alternative technologies and be able to flexibly participate more broadly across the energy storage space.

Today's filing does not affect Johnson Controls-Saft's current contracts, production orders or program launches.

"We are confident we will continue to provide our customers with quality products that meet and exceed their needs. Our commitment to our customers and this market is not changed. All of this activity reflects our long-term commitment to be a leader in the advanced battery space," said Molinaroli.